Overview
Union County's auditor, Rushton, LLC (Gainesville, Georgia), issued an unmodified opinion dated June 16, 2023: the FY2022 financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the County's financial position as of December 31, 2022. The County is governed by a sole Commissioner (Lamar Paris, per the report's letterhead). It reports two kinds of primary-government activity: governmental activities (judicial, public safety, public works, general administration and the like) and business-type activities — three enterprise funds: Butternut Creek Golf Course, Meeks Park, and Solid Waste.
In FY2022 the County as a whole added $7,749,167 to its net position: governmental activities by $7,218,796 and business-type activities by $530,371. The business-type gain came entirely from transfers in from governmental funds — before transfers and a $18,988 capital-asset contribution, the enterprise funds lost $2,624,027 on operations and nonoperating items. The General Fund itself grew strongly, adding $2,321,324 to its fund balance — see the General Fund section below.
Discretely presented component units — the Development Authority of Union County and the Union County Health Department — are legally separate and are not included in the primary-government totals on this page; their combined net position was $2,836,549 at December 31, 2022.
Source: Union County FY2022 Annual Financial Report, Independent Auditor's Report (Rushton, LLC, June 16, 2023) and Management's Discussion and Analysis — audited FY2022 report (PDF).
At a glance — FY2022 audited
Source: FY2022 audit, Statement of Net Position (Exhibit A-1) and governmental funds statements — audited FY2022 report (PDF).
Net position — December 31, 2022
Net position is what remains after liabilities and deferred inflows are subtracted from assets and deferred outflows. Each column and each row below sums exactly to its total.
| Net position by activity | Governmental | Business-type | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net investment in capital assets | $43,564,425 | $7,694,615 | $51,259,040 |
| Restricted | $10,249,437 | $0 | $10,249,437 |
| Unrestricted | $9,130,610 | $718,408 | $9,849,018 |
| Total | $62,944,472 | $8,413,023 | $71,357,495 |
Restricted detail (sums to the $10,249,437 above): capital outlay $7,839,607, judicial activities $892,909, LMIG projects $788,359, public safety activities $568,088, drug abuse treatment and education programs $84,275, law library operations $75,228, grant specifications $971.
Change in net position — FY2022
| Item | Governmental | Business-type | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net position, January 1, 2022 | $55,725,676 | $7,882,652 | $63,608,328 |
| Increase in net position | $7,218,796 | $530,371 | $7,749,167 |
| Net position, December 31, 2022 | $62,944,472 | $8,413,023 | $71,357,495 |
Governmental revenues — $37,955,461
| Source | Amount |
|---|---|
| Property tax | $12,860,002 |
| Sales tax | $13,576,670 |
| Insurance premium tax | $1,890,406 |
| Other taxes | $1,682,513 |
| Charges for services | $3,504,540 |
| Operating grants and contributions | $3,049,120 |
| Capital grants and contributions | $824,831 |
| Interest & investment earnings | $137,732 |
| Other revenue | $429,647 |
| Total governmental revenues | $37,955,461 |
Governmental expenses — $27,582,267
| Function | Amount |
|---|---|
| General government | $7,269,401 |
| Judicial | $2,778,074 |
| Public safety | $9,287,017 |
| Public works | $5,212,430 |
| Health and welfare | $999,326 |
| Culture and recreation | $442,537 |
| Housing and development | $1,588,092 |
| Interest on long-term debt | $5,390 |
| Total governmental expenses | $27,582,267 |
Revenues minus expenses ($37,955,461 − $27,582,267 = $10,373,194), less net transfers out of $3,154,398, gives the governmental increase of $7,218,796.
Source: Statement of Net Position (Exhibit A-1, pp. 15–16) and Statement of Activities (Exhibit A-2, p. 17) — audited FY2022 report (PDF).
General Fund — FY2022 actuals vs. final budget
The General Fund is the County's chief operating fund. It took in $24,761,426 against a final budget of $23,978,100 ($783,326 over), and spent $20,325,177 against a final budget of $21,515,600 ($1,190,423 under). The resulting operating surplus, partly transferred out to other funds, still grew the fund balance by $2,321,324.
Revenues — $24,761,426
| Source | Actual |
|---|---|
| Taxes | $21,561,948 |
| Licenses and permits | $529,748 |
| Fines, fees and forfeitures | $867,413 |
| Charges for services | $691,497 |
| Intergovernmental | $762,177 |
| Interest | $136,596 |
| Contributions | $55,093 |
| Other | $156,954 |
| Total revenues | $24,761,426 |
Expenditures — $20,325,177
| Function | Actual |
|---|---|
| General government | $6,598,158 |
| Judicial | $1,541,648 |
| Public safety | $8,004,869 |
| Public works | $1,995,603 |
| Health and welfare | $945,176 |
| Culture and recreation | $320,815 |
| Housing and development | $918,908 |
| Total expenditures | $20,325,177 |
Fund balance walk
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Beginning balance, Jan 1, 2022 | $6,473,222 |
| Revenues over expenditures | $4,436,249 |
| Other financing sources (uses), net | −$2,114,925 |
| Ending balance, Dec 31, 2022 | $8,794,546 |
Of that ending balance, $8,454,222 is unassigned — about 42% of General Fund expenditures, the audit's own liquidity measure — and the audit attributes the year's growth mainly to increased tax and intergovernmental revenues. Net other financing uses of $2,114,925 comprise transfers in of $288,863, transfers out of $2,790,239, and $386,451 from the sale of capital assets.
Source: General Fund Statement of Revenues, Expenditures, and Changes in Fund Balances — Budget (GAAP) and Actual (Exhibit A-7, pp. 22–23) and Governmental Funds statement (Exhibit A-5, p. 20) — audited FY2022 report (PDF).
All governmental funds — FY2022
Beyond the General Fund, the County reports the American Rescue Plan Act Fund, the SPLOST V Capital Projects Fund, and other (nonmajor) governmental funds. Every row below sums across to its total.
| Fund | Revenues | Expenditures | Ending balance |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Fund | $24,761,426 | $20,325,177 | $8,794,546 |
| American Rescue Plan Act Fund | $1,252,860 | $1,018,247 | $971 |
| SPLOST V Capital Projects | $8,586,143 | $3,033,491 | $8,616,769 |
| Other governmental funds | $3,030,145 | $4,456,139 | $2,093,036 |
| Total governmental funds | $37,630,574 | $28,833,054 | $19,505,322 |
Combined, the governmental funds took in $8,797,520 more than they spent on operations ($37,630,574 − $28,833,054), then used $1,874,064 net in other financing, for a net fund-balance increase of $6,923,456 — from $12,581,866 to $19,505,322. The SPLOST V fund alone grew $4,942,178, because SPLOST V receipts arrived faster than capital-project spending; its $8,616,769 ending balance includes $7,839,207 restricted for capital outlay. The American Rescue Plan Act Fund ended the year at $971, effectively spent out.
All-funds revenues by source (sums to $37,630,574): taxes $29,957,398, licenses and permits $529,748, fines, fees and forfeitures $1,056,695, charges for services $1,326,664, intergovernmental $4,298,071, interest $221,270, contributions $83,774, other $156,954.
Source: Governmental Funds Statement of Revenues, Expenditures, and Changes in Fund Balances (Exhibit A-5, p. 20) and Balance Sheet (Exhibit A-3, p. 18) — audited FY2022 report (PDF).
Enterprise funds — FY2022
The County's business-type activities are three enterprise funds: Butternut Creek Golf Course, Meeks Park, and Solid Waste. All three together lost money on operations; only transfers in from governmental funds lifted the group into a net gain.
| Fund | Operating revenues | Operating expenses | Operating income (loss) | Change in net position | Ending net position |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Golf Course | $1,266,128 | $1,656,891 | −$390,763 | $338,310 | $3,151,602 |
| Meeks Park | $806,269 | $3,039,346 | −$2,233,077 | −$278,656 | $4,262,729 |
| Solid Waste | $1,535,750 | $1,533,818 | $1,932 | $470,717 | $998,692 |
| Total | $3,608,147 | $6,230,055 | −$2,621,908 | $530,371 | $8,413,023 |
Operating revenues of $3,608,147 comprise charges for sales and services of $3,421,616 plus other operating revenue of $186,531. Operating expenses of $6,230,055 comprise costs of sales and services $3,038,799, personal services $2,474,023, and depreciation and amortization $717,233. After a net nonoperating loss of $2,119 and an $18,988 capital-asset contribution to Solid Waste, the pre-transfer loss was $2,605,039; net transfers in of $3,135,410 (Golf Course $738,204, Meeks Park $1,954,421, Solid Waste $442,785 net) produced the $530,371 increase — from $7,882,652 to $8,413,023.
Note: Solid Waste's ending unrestricted net position is negative $8,913 (its $998,692 total is $1,007,605 invested in capital assets less that deficit); the other two funds' unrestricted balances are positive.
Source: Proprietary Funds Statement of Revenues, Expenses, and Changes in Fund Net Position (Exhibit A-10, p. 26) and Statement of Net Position — Proprietary Funds (Exhibit A-9, p. 25) — audited FY2022 report (PDF).
Debt & capital assets
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Debt outstanding — governmental activities | $0 |
| Lease liabilities — Golf Course (current $128,807 + noncurrent $105,366) | $234,173 |
| Landfill postclosure care costs (current $14,500 + noncurrent $313,782) | $328,282 |
| Capital assets, net — governmental | $43,848,497 |
| Capital assets, net — business-type | $7,698,219 |
| Capital assets, net — total | $51,546,716 |
Governmental debt fell from $75,080 at the end of 2021 to zero at December 31, 2022 through regular scheduled payments. The $234,173 lease obligation arose under GASB Statement No. 87, newly implemented in 2022. The business-type capital-asset figure excludes $230,569 of right-to-use leased assets, which the audit reports separately; including them, business-type noncurrent assets total $7,928,788.
Capital assets by class — $51,546,716 net
| Class | Amount |
|---|---|
| Land | $9,614,384 |
| Construction in progress | $1,762,589 |
| Land improvements | $1,594,087 |
| Buildings and improvements | $42,829,418 |
| Machinery and equipment | $8,591,884 |
| Vehicles | $7,471,853 |
| Infrastructure | $21,799,153 |
| Gross capital assets | $93,663,368 |
| Less accumulated depreciation | −$42,116,652 |
| Net capital assets | $51,546,716 |
Questions about the report itself may be addressed to Union County, 65 Courthouse Street, Blairsville, GA 30512, 706-439-6000, per the audit's "Contacting the County" notice.
Source: Management's Discussion and Analysis (capital assets and debt/leases) and Statement of Net Position (Exhibit A-1) — audited FY2022 report (PDF).
Sources & notes
- Only source used: Union County, Georgia, Annual Financial Report for the year ended December 31, 2022 (audited; Rushton, LLC, Gainesville, Georgia; report dated June 16, 2023). Read the audit (PDF, UGA TED portal).
- Dated basis, repeated: Figures from the FY2022 audit — the most recent verified audit available; newer figures were not verifiable. This page is stale relative to the current fiscal year and must not be read as current. No FY2023 or later figure is used anywhere on this page.
- Sum checks: every breakdown table on this page was added up before publishing; each shown total equals the sum of its shown parts, including net position by activity, governmental revenues and expenses, General Fund revenues, expenditures and fund-balance walk, all governmental funds, enterprise funds, and capital assets by class.
- What is missing: this page has no current-year budget, no FY2023 or later actuals, and no population, staffing, or service-level figures — the FY2022 audit does not supply them in a form used here, and none were invented. A newer verified document would be needed to update this dashboard.
- Identity: this is Union County, Georgia (seat Blairsville) — not Union County in another state, and not the City of Blairsville, which has its own dashboard.
- County palette: no high- or medium-confidence Union County palette was on file, so this page uses the neutral Peach State Pulse dark-glass theme rather than a county color.